


home is where we are (in the city, by the ocean)

by heihua



Category: Free!, Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-21 11:02:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15556296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heihua/pseuds/heihua
Summary: Kagami had no plans for the upcoming holiday so of course he’s going to relax, maybe do a bit of shopping and definitely try out several of the new recipes he’s bookmarked but two hours into his supposed relaxing holiday, Kuroko’s knocking on his apartment door with a travel bag in hand.“Please hurry Kagami-kun, we have a train to catch to Iwatobi.”“Where the hell is Iwatobi?” is Kagami’s first question.Then, immediately afterwards, “Wait, why am I coming with you?”





	home is where we are (in the city, by the ocean)

**Author's Note:**

> brain: write a Free x KnB crossover
> 
> me: No, KnB ended three years ago. There is no point in going back to such an old series with characters that I struggle to write.
> 
> brain: lol do it anyways

**1.**

Kagami had no plans for the upcoming holiday so of course he’s going to relax, maybe do a bit of shopping and definitely try out several of the new recipes he’s bookmarked but two hours into his supposed relaxing holiday, Kuroko’s knocking on his apartment door with a travel bag in hand.

“Please hurry Kagami-kun, we have a train to catch to Iwatobi.”

“Where the hell is Iwatobi?” is Kagami’s first question.

Then, immediately afterwards, “Wait, why am I coming with you?”

 

**2.**

Kagami was going to say no—really, he was—but Kuroko was a little shit on a good day and an absolute little shit of a best friend on most days so _three_ hours into Kagami’s supposedly relaxing holiday he’s on a bullet train heading for the Tottori prefecture.

According to Kuroko, they’re going to have to transfer twice before they reach Iwatobi—the city in the Tottori prefecture that Kuroko’s cousin lives in—and it’s vital that they don’t miss any of their transfers or they’ll be waiting at least an hour for the next one.

“It’s because trains outside of the prefecture don’t run too often,” Kuroko patiently explains when Kagami asks him about the schedule.

“So your cousin lives in the middle of nowhere,” Kagami surmises as he digs into the fourth bento box he had brought from the train station before boarding.

“I wouldn’t say that. Iwatobi may be a quiet town but it’s very beautiful. Haruka-niisan also lives by the ocean so I’m sure you’ll enjoy the view, Kagami-kun. After all, you like to surf, don’t you?”

“Well, yea,” Kagami concedes. “But this guy’s your cousin, not mine. Why would you invite me to come along to visit him?”

Kuroko eyes Kagami from the corner of his eye. “Were you planning on spending the whole holiday by yourself, Kagami-kun?”

“Course I was,” is Kagami’s automatic response.

He doesn’t understand why that makes Kuroko’s gaze linger on him before returning to the window because it’s not like Kagami hasn’t spent his holidays alone before. He’s an only child and his dad’s always been busy with work.

He’s spent a lot of time alone. There were times back in L.A. when he had Alex and Tatsuya but he knows those times are the exception, not the norm so he’s fine. He’s used to it.

(But the way Kuroko looks at him as Kagami polishes off his fifth bento box and moves onto his sixth reminds Kagami of a lingering feeling, something almost forgotten that no matter how many burgers or bowls of rice he finishes off in his apartment, it cannot be sated.

It lingers - a feeling that has never left Kagami no matter if he’s in America or Japan.)

 

**3.**

The trip to Iwatobi is horrendous, to say the least.

They’ve been stuck on the train for nearly eight hours, give or take one hour for transfers and Kagami is ready to leap through the train roof (he’d make it too).

He’s never been so happy to hear Kuroko say that they’ve arrived in Iwatobi and would be travelling by foot to reach his cousin’s house.

As they walk through Iwatobi with the slowly setting sun behind them, Kagami can see that Iwatobi really is a beautiful place.

It has none of Tokyo or Los Angeles’ metropolitan air, none of the bustling and constant flow of activity that makes up a city and instead, there are quiet pockets of contentment and serenity seen in the easy-going conversation between store owners and the exhausted salary men and women who walk through the stores and in the slow, calm way the town sleepily goes to bed with the gradual fall of the sun down the horizon.

(For Kagami, his home has always been in the city, with the life and activity and noise that comes with living in a busy world full of people everywhere. Iwatobi is nothing like the city but Kagami still cannot help but feel a tug in his chest, some part of him that wants to say he’s home anyways.)

 

**4.**

Kuroko’s cousin lives in a quaint two-story house on top of a hill. It’s an unassuming place, well-kept on the outside with a name plaque that reads “Nanase” at the door.

On the way here, Kuroko had told him all about cousin: he’s lived alone since both his parents had gone to Tokyo for his father’s job and, as a result, did all of his own housework and cooking.

“In a sense, he’s a bit like you Kagami-kun,” Kuroko had commented and for some reason, it makes something in Kagami’s chest ache.

_Someone like him._

 

**5.**

Nanase Haruka doesn’t have the same polite demeanor as Kuroko but the way he carries himself, moving about at his own pace and unassuming is exactly like Kuroko.

His face and eyes are sharper, more angular and in the light Kagami swears Nanase-san’s eyes glow almost as bright as the ocean.

He’s also much better in the kitchen compared to Kuroko (“I’m still a master of boiled eggs, Kagami-kun,” Kuroko still likes to remind him but like hell Kagami considers that actual cooking) but since he lives on his own, Kagami doesn’t think he should be that surprised.

Nanase-san seems to have a fixation on mackerel though, insisting that they have it as part of their dinner as well as preparing more for breakfast tomorrow. Kagami doesn’t mind all too much, especially since Nanase-san looked like he was willing to consider Kagami’s suggestion of mackerel burgers for dinner tomorrow night.

 

**6.**

Haru likes Tetsuya’s friend.

While Kagami had initially reminded Haru of Sousuke back when they had first met in middle school—all stern glances and gruff scowls—he’s proven himself to be just as much of a softie (Rin’s words, not Haru’s).

Even better, he knows his way around the kitchen and is open to all sorts of cuisines involving mackerel. He wasn’t against keeping a house clean either.

When Tetsuya had called him about his friend, Haru hadn’t been expecting much and would have declined if Tetsuya hadn’t been so insistent about it. Now, Haru thinks he might even be looking forward to sitting down for dinner with Kagami.

Then, Makoto barges in, panicking and hysterical as he declares his cousin has gone missing.

 

**7.**

Looking for Nanase-san’s friend’s cousin was definitely not what Kagami had been planning for his holiday.

It _really_ doesn’t help that Kagami, Kuroko and Nanase-san had been tasked with checking the area around the Iwatobi Swim Club when it’s past ten p.m. at night, leaving the whole building in the dark with only the sparse street lights and their flashlights providing light for them.

Kagami won’t say he’s terrified but he’s _definitely_ not happy about the situation and he wouldn’t be against leaving the area as _soon as possible thank you very much_.

He barely even hears Kuroko’s confirmation that it was time for them to meet up with the Tachibana family before he’s near-bolting his way away from the area, heading straight for the main street where there’s plenty more light and definitely less likely to have ghosts because ghosts don’t go into the light, right?

Kagami’s walking fast, eyes on the ground, heading straight for underneath the lamp post he had seen earlier so he doesn’t even notice the silhouette that appears in his path.

“Kagami-kun—“ Kuroko tries, a little too late because Kagami’s already barreled straight into the person and would have bowled them over except the person was even taller than Kagami and just as strongly built so Kagami’s the one that’s falling over, flashlight flying out of his hand to shine across a familiar, weary, sweat-covered face with brown hair and equally brown eyes.

“Excuse me,” Kiyoshi Teppei tiredly says. “But would you happen to know how I can reach the Tachibana’s family house from here?”

Kagami screams.

 

**8.**

“We found your cousin.”

“Really?! Where is he, I’ll be over there in a min—is that Kagami-kun behind you?”

“As it turns out,” Haru says with just the smallest inkling of amusement and barely audible over Kagami’s yelling in the background. “Our cousins know each other.”

 

**9.**

Kagami’s still scowling about the incident the next morning but he still helps Haru with serving tea for Kiyoshi and Makoto when they come over after breakfast.

In that way, Haru can see how kind Kagami is.

“He’s a good friend,” Haru says to Tetsuya.

“Yes,” Tetsuya agrees with a smile. “He is.”

 

**10.**

Kiyoshi’s the one who brings up the idea of going into town for the day.

He wants to see the newly renovated and opened Iwatobi Swim Club that Makoto’s been teaching at and Kagami’s all for it when he hears there’s a street court in the downtown area.

Haru offers to pack bentos for everyone with the leftover mackerel and Kagami offers to help, pleasing Haru immensely.

Makoto finds it a marvel. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Haru get along with someone so quickly.”

“Despite appearances, Kagami-kun is quite kind.”

“I heard that Kuroko!” Kagami yells from the kitchen.

Kuroko says nothing and sips at his tea.

Kiyoshi smiles at Makoto. “They’re quite close.”

Makoto’s mouth quirks up into a smile. “I can see that.”

 

**11.**

“I still can’t believe you didn’t tell us you were going to be in Iwatobi senpai,” Kagami complains as they’re all on the train that would take them downtown.

Kiyoshi laughs good-naturedly. “Sorry, sorry I must have forgotten.”

Kagami huffs and grumbles but doesn’t push it.

Kiyoshi’s phone decides to suddenly chime with a notification for a new message at the moment and he picks it up, face brightening. “It’s Murasakibara!”

“It’s _who?”_ Kagami goes and it makes Haru look up at the sheer disbelief in Kagami’s voice.

“I had no idea Kiyoshi-senpai was in touch with Murasakibara-kun,” goes Kuroko.

“Mmm well,” Kiyoshi scratches his cheek in slight embarrassment. “I guess you could say it just, sort of happened? After the Winter Cup, we ended up meeting up a couple of times by accident and we eventually exchanged numbers and now we’re kind of regular text buddies?”

“How do you manage to become text buddies with a guy like that?” Kagami mutters under his breath.

“Is Murasakibara another one of your classmates?” Makoto asks.

“No, but he is another basketball player like us. He goes to school in Akita but he says his school’s going on break soon and he’ll be going back to Tokyo soon,” Kiysohi explains. “This’ll be perfect—we’ve both been wanting to go to the new café that opened up near the train station.”

“You—you guys meet up regularly?” The very idea seems to nauseate Kagami (Haru has a feeling Kagami doesn’t like Murasakibara very much).

“I don’t see why that should surprise you so much Kagami-kun. You meet up with Aomine-kun all the time,” Kuroko points out.

“Only because Aomine wants me to cook for him,” Kagami retorts.

Kiyoshi laughs. “Well aren’t you popular Kagami.”

“Don’t even go there senpai.”

 

**12.**

Their first stop once they arrive downtown is the Iwatobi Swim Club.

The children there are overjoyed to see Makoto, all clambering to get his attention while Kiyoshi, Kuroko and Kagami look on with some amazement and mild amusement (Haru had dived almost immediately into the water once they reached the pool; Kagami’s still not over the fact that Nanase-san wears swim trunks under his clothes _all the time_ ).

 

**13.**

It takes at least half an hour to pry both the children away from Makoto and Haru out of the pool but what amazes them all is that it was _Kagami_ who manages to lure Haru out of the pool with the promise of going to the supermarket for ingredients for their planned mackerel burgers.

“Quite alike, aren’t they?” says Kiyoshi with an amused smile.

“Yes,” Kuroko agrees, returning the smile.

Makoto looks at them, then back to Kagami and Haru, absolutely bewildered.

 

**14.**

The next stop is the street basketball court and Kagami all but runs to it, eager to get some basketball action in at least once during his stay in Iwatobi.

(“Kagami-kun is—in simplest terms—a basketball idiot. His greatest love is basketball,” Kuroko had explained to Makoto and Haru when they questioned him about Kagami’s excitement as they headed to the courts. “If he could marry basketball, he probably would.”

“Sounds exactly like someone else we know,” Makoto half-mutters, giving Haru a sideways glance.

“It must be why we get along so well,” Haru blandly responds, not at all missing the implication of Makoto’s look.)

He stops immediately in his tracks, however, when he sees who’s already on the court.

“What the hell is he doing here?” Kagami exclaims.

Kuroko raises an eyebrow when he catches up to Kagami, taking notice of the two people there. The one with the strawberry pink hair he doesn’t recognize but the blonde next to him—

“Oh dear,” Kuroko goes. “We should probably leave.”

“I thought you guys wanted to play basketball,” Makoto goes, confused.

Then he looks towards the court, face brightening. “Oh hey, isn’t that Kisumi over there? I don’t recognize the blonde guy next to him though.”

“We’re leaving _right now,_ ” Haru announces with grave seriousness and immediately turns around to go, Kagami on his heels but it’s too late because—

“Kurokocchi!”

\--Kise Ryota is already barreling towards them, all six feet two inches of the model bolting towards Kuroko like a golden retriever honing in on the scent of another friendly dog.

Kuroko very quickly and subtly steps to the side right before impact so Kise almost crashes into the fence instead but since it’s Kise with all the necessary instincts and reaction time to be the genius basketball player that he is, he doesn’t crash and merely wheels around to beam at Kuroko with the ferocity of a thousand exploding suns at once.

“Haru!”

Haru, unfortunately, is facing the exact same predicament as Shigino Kisumi, following after his new friend that he just made on the basketball court (and still reeling a little over the fact that it was _Kise Ryota_ of the Generation of Miracles), spots Haru and Makoto and comes charging towards them with similar ferocity.

“How are you even here Kise?” Kagami demands, grabbing Kise by the collar of his shirt so he doesn’t attempt to tackle Kuroko again. “Shouldn’t you be in Tokyo?”

“I had a modeling shoot in this area today and was going to head back after playing some street ball with Shigino – my new friend here - but then I saw Kurokocchi! What are you doing here Kurokocchi? Kagamicchi too!”

“Stop calling me Kagamicchi,” Kagami barks out.

“Haru, I’ve missed you!” Kisumi happily exclaims. “We haven’t seen each other in so long!”

“We saw each other last week at the convenience store,” Haru deadpans.

Kisumi pouts. “You’re so cold Haru. Aren’t we friends?”

“I don’t remember becoming friends with you,” goes Haru.

“So mean!” Kisumi cries out.

“Kurokocchi, let’s play some basketball together. Kagamicchi too!”

“I’m sorry Kise-kun, but we must be on our way now.”

“You’re being so cold Kurokocchi,” Kise whines. “What happened to all the time we spent in middle school and high school? Aren’t we best friends?”

“I’m sorry Kise-kun, but I don’t recall such a thing,” Kuroko monotonously states, politely bowing at the waist.

The nonchalance of it all seems to strike Kise even worse than Kuroko’s actual words.

“That’s so cold, Kurokocchi,” Kise cries, large crocodile tears streaming down his face.

Kiyoshi and Makoto watch on. They turn to Kisumi and Haru, then to Kise and Kuroko. Then back to Kisumi and Haru.

“They must be related,” says Kiyoshi.

“Definitely related,” Makoto agrees.

 

**15.**

To no one’s surprise, Kisumi and Kise throw a big fuss when Haru announces it’s time to go to the supermarket for dinner.

Kise wants to join, loudly proclaiming he wants to spend more with Kurokocchi and Kisumi wants to join because of all the stories he’s heard about Haru’s cooking (from Makoto, which causes Haru to glare at him while Makoto clasps his hands together and begs his best friend for forgiveness) but then Kise’s manager calls, threatening to leave him stranded with no way back to Tokyo if he doesn’t come back now and Kisumi gets a call from his parents reminding him to pick up Hayato from his friend’s house before coming home from dinner so the two of hem have to leave but not before vowing to see the others later.

 

**16.**

“I thought they were never going to leave,” Kagami mutters as he walks down the frozen meat section of the supermarket for ground beef.

“It’s a small world, after all,” Kiyoshi cheerfully says.

“It really is,” Makoto wearily agrees.

“Too small,” Kagami mutters.

(An instinctual part of Kagami finds relief in this thought.

If the world is truly so small, then there will always be someone within reach when the walls of his apartment become too large for him.)

 

**17.**

The mackerel burgers, much to everyone’s surprise sans Kagami and Haru, are a hit and absolutely delicious.

Makoto even gets some to take back to his family while Kagami polishes off any and all leftovers so they leave the dining table sparkling clean when they’re all done.

“I didn’t think mackerel and burgers could go so well together,” admits Makoto afterwards.

“Mackerel goes well with everything,” Haru says, affronted.

“Only for you Haru,” Makoto wearily says with a shake of his head.

 

**18.**

It’s nearly eleven at night.

Kiyoshi and Makoto had returned to the Tachibana house several hours ago, having promised to play with the twins a bit before bedtime.

Nanase-san had finished setting up the guest futons in the spare bedroom for both him and Kuroko and while Kagami would usually have no trouble falling asleep at this time of the night, for some reason he can’t sleep now.

Kuroko is already fast asleep in his futon, exhausted from the day and Kagami should be too but he’s. Not.

His body’s not too tired and initially, Kagami attributes it to his lack of exhaustion from not being able to play basketball today.

But despite Kuroko’s earlier jab about his love for basketball, Kagami does know how to live without playing basketball every day of his life (of course he wouldn’t say _no_ to a lifetime of playing basketball) and that shouldn’t be enough to hinder him from going to bed.

It’s something else but Kagami doesn’t know what it is. His body wants to move, though, so Kagami obeys this and gets out of his futon and leaves the room; down the hall, he sees a light still on.

 

**19.**

It’s Nanase-san.

He’s sitting on the back porch connected to the sitting room, eyes out towards the garden.

There is only a single lamp on the table in the room, barely enough to illuminate the place but it’s enough to not disturb how bright the outside is, aglow with the light of a hundred different fireflies that continue to flicker in and out of existence.

Sitting before the night full of fireflies Nanase-san looks almost ethereal, some other distant being observing the revolving world around them.

Kagami doesn’t want to disturb him but Nanase-san notices him first.

“You’re still awake Kagami?”

“I couldn’t sleep,” Kagami responds, as politely as he can.

“Should I make some warm tea?” Nanase-san suggests. “That might help you fall asleep.”

“No, it’s fine. I don’t want to trouble you.”

Nanase-kun huffs, the barest hint of a smile on his face and Kagami is immediately reminded of Kuroko, remembers that yes, the two of them really are cousins. “You’re already troubling me by not allowing me to make sure my guests are comfortable.”

Kagami flushes.

“I’ll get some tea made.” Nanase-san gets up, gestures for Kagami to sit down on the porch to wait for him so with nothing else to do, Kagami does.

He hears Nanase-san’s light footsteps go into the next room where the kitchen is as he turns to look out towards the garden.

Kagami has no sense of aesthetics and beauty but even he can understand that the back yard which Nanase-san was gazing out was something else. If he was more poetic, better with his words maybe he would have been able to say something profound about the view in front of him but poetry and flowery language has always been Tatsuya’s forte.

_Tatsuya._

Almost instinctively, Kagami’s hand goes up to touch the ring around his neck and at the same time, his chest clenches with a familiar, phantom pain.

(It hurts, almost as much as the memory of Tatsuya punching him but he would take this phantom pain any day over the raw, bleeding would it had been before.)

 

**20.**

“You’re always wearing that ring,” Nanase-san mentions when he comes back with the tea and Kagami is still looking out at the garden, mind still caught up on Tatsuya and fingers gently touching the ring around his neck.

“It’s something important to me,” Kagami automatically responds, perhaps tiredness and exhaustion removing all inhibitions he has of sharing personal stories. “It’s proof.”

“Proof?”

“Of brotherhood.”

“You never mentioned having a brother.”

Kagami shakes his head. “We’re not blood related but he’s – he’s like a big brother to me. We wear these rings as proof of our bond as brothers.”

Nanase-san looks at him, eyes clear and blue and it’s almost like Kagami’s starting through the ocean and into the ocean floor because the water is so clear. “Something happened though.”

Kagami starts, blinking. “What?”

“Something happened with him – the person you consider your big brother.”

Kagami turns to look at the tea in his hands, tries to stare into the dark liquid in there like he’s looking through the ocean and into the ocean floor again but it’s too murky for that. “What makes you say that?”

 

**21.**

“When you touch the ring around your neck, you look like you’re in pain,” Nanase-san quietly murmurs into the space between them.

Kagami’s chest clenches, he thinks his heart might have stopped because there is a moment where he feels completely numb, utterly unable to feel even the condensation of the glass gathering in his palms.

Then everything rushes back and he feels ashamed.

He has no reason to still be so _upset_.

Tatsuya and him had made up, they were talking again and they had even cooked together for Kuroko’s birthday party.

So why does he still hurt?

 

**22.**

“When something is broken, it never truly returns to how it was before.” It’s Nanase-san’s voice again, quiet but smooth like the rush of a peaceful stream. “No matter how much time passes, or how far you two have come.”

Kagami looks up, eyes wide and disbelieving.

(He looks every bit sixteen then, every bit the child Kuroko had described to Haru on the phone when he asked if he could bring his friend over.

“I want to help him,” admitted Kuroko. “To repay him for everything he has done for me and my friends. And because he’s my friend too, Haruka-niisan.”

“What do you want to help him with?” Haru had asked.

It had been quiet over the phone for a moment before he hears Kuroko say, “How to not be lonely.”)

“Nanase-san? You - ?”

“We’re friends now.” Nanase-san faces the back yard again, only the side of his face faintly visible in the slowly fading light from the sitting room’s lantern. “But back when we were in middle school, I hurt him – deeply.”

Something like a bitter smile curls up the half of Nanase-san’s mouth that Kagami can see. “All because of swimming. Because I loved the water enough to be considered a genius.”

(Kagami remembers cold eyes, indifferent looks and scornful gazes.

“You’re too different.”

“We can’t match up with you.”

“Don’t bother with us.”

_“Go away,”_ they hiss at him, ignoring the hand he stretches out to help them out when they’ve fallen down, when he tries to apologize for being too rough when he plays. _“Go away and leave us alone.”_ _)_

“I couldn’t forgive myself for that, so I quit swimming competitively.” Nanase-san’s face becomes outlined by the flickering lights of the fireflies. “But we made up eventually. It was a long road and it was difficult but we’re friends again. Even then, I still remember.”

Nanase-san finally turns to face him, wide ocean eyes still so clear Kagami feels he’s surfing in Los Angeles again, diving into the wave that’s coming down on him.

“It’s like that with you as well isn’t it, Kagami?”

Kagami pretends he hasn’t been holding his breath and loosens his shoulders, fingers still wrapped around his ring. “Yea – yea, it is.”

Kagami swallows and in a voice so soft, almost childlike he asks, “Does it ever get better?”

“Perhaps.” Nanase-san is kind enough to offer comfort but also wise enough to know that a well-meaning lie would only be cruel to Kagami. “But what’s more important is the present and future. After all, you’ve done everything you can to make things better, haven’t you?”

“Of course!” Kagami says it so quickly, so passionately that Nanase-san knows it has to be true. “And – and we’re brothers again. Just like before. We talk all the time and Tatsuya’s the best big brother anyone could ever ask for but – “ Kagami swallows and he’s quiet again, voice as soft as it was loud just seconds before. “But sometimes I remember what – what happened back then and I. I get afraid.”

( _What does the ring mean to them now? Is it still proof of their brotherhood because they both still wear it?_

_It is enough?)_

“I wish I hadn’t hurt him like that,” Kagami confesses.

(He wants to be ten again – back when talent was just a passing compliment that meant as little as the half-eaten burgers tossed into the park’s trash bins and there had only been Taiga and Tatsuya learning how to play basketball together and Tatsuya holding his hand when Kagami got too scared from watching a late night move on the television even though he would never admit it but Tatsuya would know anyways and hold out his hand, claiming that he was the one afraid even though they both know it’s Taiga who’s shivering and pale and won’t be able to sleep afterwards.)

“We can’t do anything about what we did back then. There’s no point in contemplating what-ifs and maybes Kagami.” Nanase-san is steadfast in the night, his back straight as he looks at Kagami with all the resolve of an ocean rising up to come forth, prepared to crush even mountains. “Do you regret making up with your brother?”

“No, never.”

Nanase-san smiles then, real and warm and Kagami’s no longer looking at oceans but a calm lake. “Then, that’s all that matters.”

(Kagami can’t go back to when he and Tatsuya were ten anymore but now he has seventeen year old Tatsuya back by his side, a little taller and enigmatic than before but still his big brother.)

“Yeah,” Kagami agrees, breathless once more but not even trying to hide it this time.

 

**23.**

Kagami sleeps well that night.

(He’s convinced it was the tea. Nanase-san knows otherwise.)

 

**24.**

The next morning, Kagami wakes up later than the two cousins so he comes down for breakfast after they had both started eating. Nanase-san, the ever gracious host he was, stood up and went back into the kitchen to serve up Kagami’s portion.

While he's gone, Kagami takes the opportunity to lean over the dining table, getting straight into Kuroko’s face. “You’re a little shit, you know that Kuroko?”

Kagami can’t see Kuroko’s face behind the napkin he’s using to wipe his face but he just _knows_ that Kuroko’s smiling. “I haven’t the slightest clue as to what you’re referring to, Kagami-kun.”

“You know I’d get along with your cousin,” Kagami accuses. “That’s why you decided to drag me to the middle of nowhere – so I’d bond with him and not spend our school vacation alone. Momoi probably told you my family wouldn’t be around and Tatsuya wouldn’t be visiting either, didn’t she?”

“I think you’re overestimating Momoi-san’s intelligence gathering skills a bit, Kagami-kun. I don’t think even Momoi-san could have known about Himuro-san not being available to come down even though Yosen was on break,” Kuroko blandly responds, bottom half of his face still covered by his napkin.

(Like hell that little shit was still wiping his face at this point – he was definitely smiling and trying to hide it to piss Kagami off even more.)

Kagami continues to fix him with a glare. “You are, and always will be, the most frustrating person I ever deal with Kuroko.”

“Why thank you Kagami-kun, I had no idea you thought so fondly of me.”

Kagami huffs and leans back just as Nanase-san returns with Kagami’s breakfast.

 

**25.**

“You should come over the next weekend we’re free,” Kagami says to Kuroko as they wash the dishes together.

(Kagami had offered since he had some manners, despite Kuroko saying otherwise and Kuroko had been dragged along – literally – by the head.)

“Is there anything in particular you need from me?” Kuroko asks as he takes another plate from Kagami and dries it.

“I’ll make your favorite foods,” goes Kagami. He doesn’t meet Kuroko’s eyes and is starting intently at the soapy waters where his hands are immersed. “Just tell me what you want to eat and I’ll get the groceries for them.”

Kuroko has to try very hard not to smile when he sees the very light pink that outlines Kagami’s ears. “Then I’d like Wagyu beef, please.”

“I will drown you in this sink right now, Kuroko.”

 

**26.**

Several days later, Kagami and Kuroko are packing their bags, rolling up the guest futons and leaving the Nanase house, ready to return back to Tokyo.

“We’ll be off then, Nanase-san,” Kagami says at the doorway, bags slung over his shoulder and Kuroko waiting for him at the top of the stone stairs outside.

(Kuroko will tell Haruka-niisan at a later date that he had done this on purpose – leaving before Kagami so Kagami could privately say his own farewells to Haruka-niisan. He never tells this to Kagami-kun, though, but he has a feeling Kagami-kun figures it out anyways.)

“Call me Haruka.” Haruka-san says. “In exchange, I’ll call you Taiga.”

Kagami smiles – a soft and small thing and it’s almost like they’re sitting side-by-side on the back porch again, the fireflies against the night sky like speckles of gold across velvet. “See you later, Haruka-san.”

 

**27.**

(“Taiga,” Haruka-san calls out, one last time at the doorway, Kagami halfway down the path and Haruka-san standing at the entrance with a smile just as soft and small as Kagami’s and just as genuine. “You’re welcome back any time.”)

**28.**

One week later, Kagami’s in a Tokyo supermarket buying groceries when he spots mackerel on sale.

He thinks he’s smiling when he buys it and he’s definitely smiling when he’s back home, fresh mackerel sitting on his counter for dinner as he calls a number of a friend he would have never imagined making.

”Haruka-san,” greets Kagami as the call picks up. “Do you have any smoked mackerel recipes?”

**Author's Note:**

> this is literally just a 5k disaster and also known as the one time i attempt to write a crossover while trying to write more about kagami's character and the loneliness he must face living in a completely different country by himself with no friends but 3k in realized i've bitten off more than i can chew so whOOPS


End file.
